Tri-City Sun

Amidst the ongoing controversy regarding how the recent elections process was carried out locally, the Michigan Senate Oversight Committee issued a subpoena to the Michigan Bureau of Elections seeking records from across the state.

Michigan Sen. Curt VanderWall (R-Ludington) joined his fellow legislators in expressing a desire to get down to the specific facts, according to the MiSenateGOP website.

“Right now, many of my constituents and many Michiganders are asking about the recent election and wanting assurance that everything was done by the book,” he told MiSenateGOP.

Sen. Curt VanderWall | #MiSenateGOP

VanderWall said that pursuing any and all concerns regarding the fairness and transparency of the elections process was in the best interests of establishing and maintaining the voters’ trust.

“Government cannot operate without the trust of the people we serve,” he said, according to MiSenateGOP. “Our responsibility as their voice in Lansing is to ensure that this election and all elections going forward are secure and that all ballots are accurately counted.”

VanderWall did not present the ongoing inquiry as any kind of effort to undermine the elections process, but rather a way to seek out any and all opportunities to ensure that the state’s elections are as well-run and fair as possible.

“The purpose of today’s joint House and Senate oversight committee hearing was to review current election processes and to determine what, if any, opportunities to ensure accurate and fair elections we need to pursue," he told the GOP website.

VanderWall also stressed the importance of bipartisan cooperation in seeking to ensure that Michigan's elections are above reproach or challenge. “I am committed to working with my colleagues in the Senate and House, both Democrats and Republicans, to ensure fair elections in Michigan," he said, according to MiSenateGOP.